The idle musings of a former military man, former computer geek, medically retired pastor and now full-time writer. Contents guaranteed to offend the politically correct and anal-retentive from time to time. My approach to life is that it should be taken with a large helping of laughter, and sufficient firepower to keep it tamed!

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Doofus Of The Day #252

A conventioneer from Massachusetts is challenging a $29,512 bill for a night of entertainment and drinks at a topless dancing club in Las Vegas.

James Hackett of Andover, Mass., filed a lawsuit Friday in Las Vegas against the owner of the Club Paradise Gentlemen's Club and American Express Co., disputing the amount that was billed to his American Express card last Oct. 12.

Adam Gentile, general manager of Club Paradise, said Tuesday he was not familiar with Hackett's claims. He said it's not unusual for someone to run up a large, confirmed bill at the club and later regret it -- in which case the dispute over payment of the bill would be between the customer and the credit card company.

Hackett says he flew to Las Vegas Oct. 11 to attend the Direct Marketing Association Trade Show. After checking in to the Las Vegas Hilton, he went to a Hilton hotel bar to watch a Boston Red Sox baseball game on television and had some vodka martinis, his lawsuit says.

While watching the game, someone handed him his wallet and said Hackett had dropped it, Hackett's suit says. Nothing was missing from the wallet, but Hackett noticed his driver's license and American Express card had been switched from their usual positions.

Hackett said in his lawsuit he talked to some Red Sox fans from Phoenix, left for the hotel lobby and apparently blacked out there and can't remember anything else that may have happened that night.

. . .

... after returning to Massachusetts, Hackett said he learned of a series of charges to his American Express card by Club Paradise between 2:55 a.m. and 8:54 a.m. on Oct. 12.

These totaled $29,512 -- about $4,000 for a bar tab and more than $25,000 for "unexplained services" involving entertainers "Paulina," "Jani Lee," "Isabel," "Vanessa," "Roxanne" and "Lexi."

Hackett said in his lawsuit he has no recollection of visiting Club Paradise and that he filed police reports in Massachusetts and Las Vegas about the incident.

But the lawsuit says that after he challenged the charges, Club Paradise provided him with documents purportedly signed by Hackett in connection with the charges.

The documents said the club is not involved with prostitution or escort services, that he was not drunk or impaired and that he was not under duress when he purportedly signed the documents, the lawsuit says.